How can I help you grow your business?
The latest radio interview was with Christine Richards of Blackbelt Business Solutions. I’m taking a short break from the radio show, but will have a new interview in the near future.
My latest article on Biznik is about the topic: When does online social networking become too much?
How can I help you Grow your Business?
As a business coach, one of my challenges involves explaining how I can help you grow your business, in a way that provides you a concrete sense of the value I’m bringing to you and your business if you engage my services.
I will do the following for you:
1. I will provide informational and practical classes that help you understand topics such as online social networking, marketing your business, and how to create a message that speaks to your skills and strengths. More importantly you will come away with practical skills you can implement immediately, that will help your business grow sooner than later.
2. I will continue to blog and provide radio shows and videos regularly with insights on how to grow your business, while maintaining your overall life quality.
3. I will introduce you to other people and networking sites, which can help you make connections, and grow your business in the process.
4. I will offer you a free 30 min coaching/consulting session on how to grow your business.
5. I will offer quality freelance editing and writing services that provide you a message which represents you professionally and tastefully.
6. I will show you how to automate your business processes so that you spend more time living your life and less time scrambling for business.
There is a catch though. Once you have this information, you have to be ready to implement it and make it part of your business plan. I can provide support, suggestions, and advice, but you have to actually use it in order to grow your business.
Taylor Ellwood
http://www.imagineyourreality.com
Upcoming Events
I will be offering workshops in the near future on online social networking, blogs, and marketing suggestions for how to grow your business.
Why human relations are so important
Tonight’s interview was with with Jo Smith, about her work with Service Firms and working across generations. Next Week’s show is with Christine Richards of Blackbelt Business Solutions.
Why Human Relations are so Important
The most crucial element of a successful business is the relationships cultivated between the business and the people the business serves. No business can operate without some kind of client and the key to good business is to have a client base, which is happy and loyal and wants to keep doing business with you.
What makes someone want to keep doing business with you? Showing that you genuinely care about the well-being of the person, that you aren’t just after the money, but that you actively want to create a relationship that will last a long time. Sending an email or following up with a card or phone call are all important activities that show that you care about your client and are willing to give a little extra effort to show that care.
A business is ultimately defined by its clients. It is they who tell people about what you do and how you have helped them. Without a client, no matter how polished your business looks, or what it offers, it is dead in the water. A client provides momentum, and success.
Human relations can’t be replaced by anything. We inevitably must interact with other people. How we choose to interact with those people sets the tone for the business and its success or failure. So when you work on your business plan, remember to work as well on your people skills. It can sometimes make the biggest different in not only gaining a client, but keeping him/her as well.
Review: Wikipatterns by Stewart Mader
Remember how I mentioned technology in my last post…well one of the books I’ve been reading is wikipatterns. I recently started using a wiki and thought this book might help me with getting a good idea of how to use a wiki. Turns out to be a great book for theory, but doesn’t offer much in practice. The author does include case studies, but doesn’t really explain or show how to make wikis work. It’s a case of a tech head writing for a tech head audience, so the focus is more or less on how people with technology skills would use this technology, as opposed to focusing on how anyone else might use it. It has some useful information, but I can’t really recommend it to business owners as something which would explain why you’d want to use a wiki.
2 out of 5 wikis
Upcoming Events
How to Get Set up on Online Social Networking Sites
Where: USquared
1562 Se Tacoma St Portland or
When: 6pm-8:30pm March11th
Cost: $50
RSVP: imagineyourreality@gmail.com
Social networking is becoming a hot topic in businesses, but a lot of people aren’t sure how it helps grow your business or get you clients. In this two hour class, business and writing coach Taylor Ellwood will show you how to set up a profile on Linked in as well as connect it to your blog, how to use your status bar to communicate with people, and even how to use recommendations to help you and other businesses grow while getting valuable testimonials.
Taylor will also show you how to set up a biznik, facebook, and twitter account and how to use these social networking tools to not only keep people updated on what you are doing, but also draw more interest to your business through what you are telling people.
Finally Taylor will cover the do’s and don’ts of social networking and how to present a professional image online, while raising the visibility of your business and making connections with other businesses and clients. Taylor will also explain how to automate your social networks so that you can continue to focus on growing your business, while having a viable online presence.
Sales isn't a dirty word
Interview with Clare Bean of IHeartsingleParents.com. Next week’s interview is with Cleon Cox.
Sales Isn’t a Dirty Word
I just finished a two day sales seminar offered by Christine Richards of Blackbelt Business Solutions (I’ll be interviewing her on the radio show in a few weeks!). I can’t say enough good about what I learned about sales, namely the process of how it works and how it doesn’t have to be as intimidating as some people think it is. I have to admit that sales has been one part of my business where I’ve pretty weak, because I’m not always sure how to ask for the sale.
At this seminar, I learned how to ask for the sale, how to feel more confident and also still be respectful of the client. Sales isn’t a dirty word. It is, in fact, an essential part of doing business and we can’t ignore the need to do it, because if we do, we quickly find that we don’t have clients.
Two of the most important aspects of sales is asking questions and listening. Asking questions shows a genuine concern with and interest in the person you are questioning. Likewise, listening is equally important because it shows genuine interest in the potential client.
Another element I think is important is your sales plan. Just as you might write up a marketing or business plan, its equally important to write a sales plan which accounts for how much money you want to make and how you intend to make it. I’ve been working on my sales plan the last couple of nights and I already feel much clearer on that aspect of my business. It does help to have a formula in place where you look at how much you want to make and figure out how many clients it would take to bring that income in, as well as how many contacts you would need to get those clients.
Sales can be fun. I’ve already used several of the processes from Christine’s class and noticed a difference. I’m certain I’ll notice more differences as I continue to practice the techniques and apply them to situations where I need to close a sale.
Upcoming Classes and Events
I will be speaking at the B to C I take the Lead Networking Event on Thursday February 12th, at noon, at Macadam’s Bar and Grill 5833 SW Macadam Portland, Or. The topic will be on how to use podcasts and internet radio to market your business.
I will be speaking at The Women Entrepreneur’s of Oregon on February 19th at noon, at 11900 SW Broadway, Beaverton Or. The topic will be on online social networking.
On February 23rd I’ll be presenting a free teleclass, from 7 to 8pm on The Three Audiences: How to prepare your book for publishers
In this workshop, I discuss the three audiences: The audience who reads your book, the agent who submits it, and the publisher who considers it. We discuss how to write a cover letter, a bio, a synopsis, and a marketing statement.c This workshop is for any writer who is trying to get published and isn’t sure how to get the publisher interested enough to say “yes!”
To register, please go to http://www.imagineyourreality.com/schedule.html
On February 24th I’ll be presenting a free teleclass from 7-8pm on Online Social Networking: How to make it work for you
In this workshop, I’ll be discussing what online social networking is, which social networking websites you should be on and how to make your social networking sites work for you when it comes to promoting your products and services.
To register, please go to http://www.imagineyourreality.com/schedule.html
Book Reviews
Review of the Analects by Confucius
I found this to be a fascinating book because it presents a perspective on social morality and the obligations constructed around having a family and a duty to the society you live in. I’m not sure if the translation is as accurate as it could be and there were times where the subtlety of the subject matter escaped me, likely because I’m not from china nor do I really have an accurate understanding of the culture in Confucius’s time, let alone present time. Still, I found this book fascinating because it presents a different perspective on social responsibility and morality toward the people we interact with. I highly recommend reading it as an opportunity to expand your horizons both culturally and for social responsibility.
4 out of 5
Review of Working for Yourself by Stephen Fishman
This is an excellent book to read if you are working for yourself. Fishman explains how taxes work for self-employed people, how to make the IRS work for you, while avoiding an audit, and also how to draw up contracts which protect your time and income. If you are self-employed you will need this book. Even better, the matter is very accessible and easy to work through. Fishman breaks the chapters down so that it’s easy to find what you need, without necessarily having to read the entire book.
5 out of 5 financial attorneys
